


Ecdysis

by AngelusLorelei



Category: Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
Genre: Bittersweet, Fluff and Angst, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2020-07-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 10:08:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25348981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelusLorelei/pseuds/AngelusLorelei
Summary: Ecdysis n.  the process of shedding the old skinOnce every fifty years or so, angels experience ecdysis.  They shed their old feathers as the new come in.  This can be painful without assistance.  Luckily most angels come together as a community to help each other.But even those who have fallen and those without wings go through the pain.  Luckily this time, you're here to help.
Relationships: Asmodeus/Main Character (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Beelzebub/Main Character (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Belphegor/Main Character (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Leviathan/Main Character (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Lucifer/Main Character (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Main Character/Mammon (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Main Character/Satan (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)
Comments: 23
Kudos: 462
Collections: Obey Me!





	Ecdysis

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by a twitter thread by Iko (@Sierra_Sheep) and built upon by Vic (@faikittyy).
> 
> I hope I did your ideas justice.

You should have known that something would go wrong. Things had been going well and everyone was calm and in good spirits. Nothing stayed stable in the Devildom for long. One day at breakfast, Beel seemed to have lost his appetite. Belphie, always tired, was now irritable every second his eyes were open. He even snapped at Beel and at you. Concerned, you’d tried to question Satan. But Satan snarled at you in response and slammed his bedroom door shut in your face. Asmo merely sneered and made pointed remarks about the stress affecting your skin and making it look **horrendous.** Levi actually locked you out of his room and Mammon, sweet reliable Mammon was ignoring you completely.

You were feeling particularly depressed one Wednesday when Simeon pulled you aside.

“Are you alright?”

The kindness in the angel’s tone almost made you burst into tears right there in the hall. You shook your head and Simeon pulled you into a hug. After you collected yourself, Simeon took you to Purgatory Hall where Luke offered you tea and your favorite biscuits. Plying you with sweets and kind words, the two angels managed to pull the whole thing out of you.

“Oh, little lamb.” Simeon stroked your hair, “I’d noticed that Lucifer seemed on edge. But he’s always annoyed when I’m around so I didn’t even think to warn you.”

“Warn me? About what?”

“It’s our time for ecdysis.”

“Ecdysis?”

“Molting.” Luke clarified, “Shedding the old and in with the new!”

“Once every fifty years or so we start getting our new feathers,” Simeon explained.

“It’s so itchy!” Luke lamented, “And sometimes it really hurts when a bunch come in at once.”

“I assume that the brothers, even the ones who lost their wings, go through something similar still. In the Celestial Realm, we all help each other out. But I suspect it has been some time since anyone was able to help them.”

“I can’t imagine what it must be like dealing with it all alone.” Luke looked surprisingly sad at the thought of the demon brothers suffering. “Maybe I should see if Beelzebub needs some help?”

“I’m sure Beel would appreciate it if you made him some Celestial treats Luke.” Simeon smiled and patted Luke’s head.

When Luke hurried away to the kitchen to get started, Simeon took your hand in his. “Actually, I could use some help if you don’t mind.”

“Of course!” you replied.

“I suspect,” Simeon grinned, “If you help me, you’ll be able to help out the brothers as well. Let’s begin.”

And with an eruption of golden light, Simeon’s wings burst forth. They were shining white and edged in gold. The sight was enough to bring tears to your eyes. Gently, Simeon showed you how he carefully ran his fingers through the feathers. How to search for loose feathers. How to gently dig into the down and find the pin feathers coming in. And after a few hours, you felt surprisingly comfortable with the intimate nature of the experience. When Luke returned with his finished sweets, Simeon coaxed the little angel into bringing out his wings. And the two of you worked on Luke’s. While Simeon had two full sets of wings and a third smaller set, Luke had only one. His wings were impossibly soft and the color of a robin’s egg. When you had finished, you were left with a small pile of feathers. Sorting through them, Simeon pressed three into your hands.

“For all your hard work.” the angel winked, “Don’t tell Solomon or he’ll be very jealous. Angel feathers are incredibly rare.”

“And magical!” Luke supplied.

“And magical.” Simeon agreed. “Now, let me walk you home.”

***

A few days later, not much had changed. In fact, the brothers’ moods were undoubtedly worse. Not even the Celestial sweets had improved Beel’s mood. But you’d spend the last few days doing some research of your own in the Royal Library during your part-time job. You were ready with a plan. You decided to start with Beel. You made a quadruple batch of chocolate chip cookies and knocked on his bedroom door. He was alone because you knew Belphie was asleep in the attic.

“Hey, Beel.” You poked your head around the door, “I brought you some cookies.”

Beel was laying on his stomach in his bed. He was in his demon form and his wings were periodically buzzing irritably. You shut the door behind you and made your way to his side. You strategically positioned the tray of cookies to the smell would waft temptingly over to him. Beel finally turned to face you and grunted. You gently stroked his hair and put the tray on the floor.

“Hey, big guy.” Beel leaned into your touch and reached for a cookie. After he ate about a dozen, you tentatively asked, “Can I try to help you?”

Beel paused mid-chew and you gestured to his wings. Beel looked embarrassed and said, “Been trying to hide it from you.”

“Why?”

Beel looked away and muttered, “I hate them.”

You felt your heart ache. “Do they hurt?”

Beel shook his head, “They **itch**.”

You pulled a small container from your pocket. “I think… I think this could help.”

Beel studied the label. “Wing Wax.”

You nodded, “I was doing some reading at the library and…” you trailed off.

Beel grunted and after eating another cookie he finally nodded. “Okay.”

He rested his chin on his hand and continued to eat. You clamored onto the bed and straddled his hips. Gently, you touched the buzzing wings. They were strangely warm to the touch and when they caught the light they shone iridescent. Opening the container, you warmed some of the wax in your hand. When it was soft enough, you began to gently rub it into Beel’s wings. He reacted almost viscerally, hissing between his teeth. You froze.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” He managed, “Feels good.”

You smiled at that and continued your work. A little of the wax went a long way and you mentally thanked the universe for magic. You stroked the wax over his wings paying special attention to where they attached to his back. Eventually, they stopped twitching and Beel was humming in contended happiness under your touch. When you finished and got up off of him, you were touched to see that he was asleep. Covering Beel with a blanket, you tiptoed out of the room.

***

Belphie was next and brushing your fingers through his hair was easy. He loved that when he laid in your lap. Letting your fingers drift, you found where his horns met his scalp. Gently you scratched and rubbed and massaged until Belphie moaned in pleasure. You fit your hands through his horns and waxed them where they were rubbed raw. You brushed his tail until he was twitching it happily in your hands. The coarse hair was matted and you took great pleasure in combing out the mats and rubbing in oil to make it soft. When you were done, Belphie held you close and whispered his thanks. If you felt his tears dampen your clothing, you didn’t mention it to him.

***

You thought that Asmo would be easy. He always loved being touched and admired after all. But he’d practically become a recluse. One day you didn’t bother knocking (truly dangerous when it came to Asmo) and you entered his room. You heard splashing and knew he was in the tub. Gingerly you entered the inner sanctum and found Asmo **crying** of all things. One of his hands stroked a horn and the other clutched at a wing. You felt his sobs deep in your soul and without thinking you stripped and wrapped a towel around yourself. You coughed and knocked.

“Asmo?”

You head him splash around and then a short silence followed by, “Come in!”

He tried to sound jovial. He tried to sound like himself. He tried to flirt with you, to jab at you, to make you run. But instead, you entered the bath rendering him speechless. Wrapping your arms around him, you pulled him close and whispered,

“You’re so beautiful. I love you.”

He preened but you could see it was hollow. An act. Cupping his cheeks, you looked him straight in the eye,

“Stop it. Asmo. Let me in. You’re so good. You’re so strong. You take such good care of your brothers. You take such good care of me. Let me help you. Just this once.”

And Asmo fell apart in your arms. You held him and whispered praise into his ear. You washed his hair. You massaged his scalp. Gently you rubbed oil into his leather wings and pressed chaste kisses to them. You took him from the tub and put him into bed. You held him close and you whispered that he was more than beautiful. He was kind, he was special, he was important. You loved him just as he was. Asmo fell asleep clutching you close as though you were anchoring him to the world. And the next day, he seemed better.

***

“Satan, I’m coming in.”

Satan was glaring at you over his book. “Go away.”

“Nope.”

“I know what you’re trying to do. It won’t work.”

“Oh really?”

“Yes, really.” he hissed, “I have never been in the Celestial Realm. I have no connection to this other than pain and annoyance and **anger**.”

Satan shuddered and you could almost see the rage pouring off of him in purple waves. Leaning against the wall you tried to appear nonchalant.

“You never know until you let me try.”

Satan **snarled** at you and his fangs elongated.

“I’m not scared of you.”

He crossed the room in a millisecond, “You should be!”

His arms penned you in against the wall. His breath was hot and his claws dug into the stone. You were afraid. But… you brought your hand up, slowly, so he could see you move. Then you touched his cheek.

“I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to do Satan. I’m worried about you. I love you. I want to help you if I can.”

Your touch and your words seemed to take the wind from his sails.

“You have a choice. You **always** have a choice with me. This can be whatever you want it to be. You get to decide Satan.”

“I… I don’t want to. Don’t touch my horns. Or my tail.”

“Okay.” You smiled and took your hand away.

Satan grabbed your hand, “I didn’t say I wanted you to stop touching me altogether.”

Immediately you cupped his face in your hands and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Okay.”

***

Levi is next and you spend a few days texting him to warm him up for company. It’s telling him that you have a recording of the Tribute to Studio Ghibli album that is unavailable in the Devildom that gets you into his room. When you get there Levi is even more on edge than usual. He’s practically jumping out of his skin. So you’re patient. You put on the music. You listen together and talk about movies and animation. Levi’s skin twitches every so often. Like a horse when a fly bites it. You remember Beel’s wings and you ask,

“Does it itch.”

Levi turns bright red and mutters something about nosy normies. You scoot closer to him and gently say,

“But I’m **your** nosy normie.”

The Avatar of Envy slumps in his seat at that.

“Simeon told me,” you say, “about ecdysis.”

Levi glares, but not at you. He studies Henry’s tank intently before he says, “I lost them. My wings.”

He takes a deep shuddering breath and you can barely hear him whisper, “It’s not fair.”

“No,” you agree, “It’s not.”

Levi bites his lip and studies you. Whatever he sees seems to reassure him and he says, “Now I shed my skin.”

“Your skin?”

He pulls back and his cheeks turn red, “Y-y-yeah! So!?”

You feel like you’re trying to gain the trust of a wild horse. Or perhaps more aptly, a rattlesnake. If he strikes out at you, you’re a goner. But if he’d just let you help, it would be so rewarding.

“So? I think that’s kind of cool.”

Levi flinches, “You’re making fun of me.”

“I’m not.” You reassure him, “I’d never make fun of you Levi-chan. I’m your Henry.”

That seems to reassure him, “Promise you won’t laugh?”

“I promise.” You cross your heart solemnly.

Levi stands and moves to his tub-bed. He turns on the water full force and the air around him ripples as he changes. He looks more snakelike now. Scales run up his arms, down his back. He strips his shirt off and you see his tail lash in agitation. You step closer as the tub fills.

“Can I? Can I touch?”

Levi stiffens but he says, “Okay.”

You run your fingers over his scales and he shudders. Again you’re reminded of Beel’s wings.

“Does it itch here?”

“Yes…” Levi whimpers, “ **So** much.”

He enters the tub and you find yourself gently cupping water and pouring it over his scales. You scratch between his shoulder blades and he lets out a sound that is part hiss part rattling moan. You run your wet fingers through his hair and scratch next to his horns. They twist like coral and you smile at him.

“Still love you Levi-chan.”

Your recluse otaku pulls you into a hug.

***

Mammon is actually rummaging through your room when you find him. You shut the door with a loud thud.

“What’re you doing?!”

“Uh I **live** here.”

Mammon flushes red and sits on the floor. You sit on the floor too and crawl towards him. He pouts,

“How come ya always help out everyone else but me?”

“Mammon…”

“I was your first!”

Gently you press a kiss to his cheek, “I waited because you’re important to me. You matter.”

“Y-yeah?”

“Yeah.”

With a shudder, he releases his demon form. You lean in and gently trace the spirals of his horns as his wings unfurl. Crawling into his lap you rest your forehead against his. With your eyes closed, you listen to his breathing. You hear it hitch when you gently brush a finger down his cheek.

“Ya know you’re my number one right?”

You smile then and hug him tight, “You’re mine too.”

You spend several hours gently rubbing Mammon’s wings. You oil them like Asmo's and admire the way they feel like velvet where they join his body. You sigh sadly at the places where they were ripped. Mammon doesn’t speak. For once he’s quiet and contemplative. You fall asleep in his arms, wrapped in his wings and you feel him press a kiss to the corner of your mouth when he moves you to your bed.

***

Lucifer is last and you corner him in his private study late one night. You already know he must be in pain because he has let his demon form leak through. His wings twitch and shudder as he writes. Opening the door, you begin to read the poem you had found in the Royal Library.

_“_ _There was, as in the fairy tales,_ _  
__As ne'er in the time's raid,_ _  
__There was, of famous royal blood_ _  
__A most beautiful maid._ ”

Glancing up at him, you saw that he had stopped writing. When he didn’t speak you continued.

_“She was her parents' only child,  
Bright like the sun at noon,  
And like the virgin midst the saints  
And among stars the moon.  
_

_From the deep shadow of the vaults  
Her step now she directs  
Toward a window: at its nook  
Bright Lucifer expects”_

Before you can continue in your poem, Lucifer replies.

_“She looks as in the distant seas  
He rises, darts his rays  
And leads the blackish, loaded ships  
On the wet, moving, ways._

Your eyes go wide and you feel your breath catch as he continues to recite from memory. _  
_

_To look at him every night  
Her soul her instincts spur;  
And as he looks at her for weeks  
He falls in love with her._”

He reaches out and gestures you to come close. You cross the room and he pulls you into his lap. His hands run over your shoulders, down your arms, then back up again. He caresses your neck and his thumbs trace light circles on your cheeks.

“Where,” he asks, “did you find that?”

“The Royal Library.”

He chuckles but the sound is bitter, “Of course.”

“Lucifer,” you whisper, “Let me help you.”

A shudder goes through his whole body and before you can change your mind, you reach for a wing. Gently, gingerly you card your fingers through the feathers, just as Simeon taught you. This gesture seems to almost undo him completely. His wings quiver at your touch and he doesn’t stop you when you move from his lap, behind his chair. You reach deep within the downy softness and find his pin feathers. Gently you twist and help them unfurl. Lucifer nearly falls forward onto his desk but the sigh he lets out is deep, guttural, and sounds like a release.

***

You spend the next few weeks helping each of the brothers as best you can. Some times are easier than others. Sometimes they cannot bear to be touched. But slowly, as time passes, the House of Lamentation begins to feel like home again.


End file.
